In-floor fittings such as poke-thru fittings, afterset fittings, and preset fittings are installed in concrete floors to provide electrical receptacles and communication/data receptacles (or jacks) at desired locations in buildings. Poke-thru fittings are designed to be installed in an opening in a floor, such as a concrete slab or steel deck, in a building structure such as an office building to provide electrical receptacles and/or communication/data receptacles at desired locations in buildings. As explained in U.S. Pat. No. 4,770,643, source power and signal cables, loosely positioned in a plenum, which is between the ceiling of the floor below and the floor above (that is, the floor in which the opening is in), may be pulled from the plenum and connected with or passed through the poke-thru fitting for activation of services for and on the floor above. More specifically, high voltage source power cables are connected with power receptacles that may be mounted within the poke-thru fitting or surface mounted on the floor above the fitting. Lower voltage communication/data signal cables have traditionally been passed through the poke-thru fitting to provide above floor connections between these cables and equipment positioned on the floor above. More recently, poke-thru fittings have been developed that also provide for mounting the communication/data receptacle within the fitting.
Standards promulgated by Underwriters Laboratories (UL) require poke-thru fittings to enable the fire rating of the floor to be substantially the same with or without the floor opening and fitting therein. As a result, poke-thru fittings typically incorporate fire-retarding material, generally intumescent material, to retard the transmission of heat and flame from a fire in the plenum, for example. The intumescent material is activated upon exposure to a fire's heat and flames, rising through the floor opening from a fire below the floor. The intumescent material absorbs the heat and expands to fill open spaces in the floor.
One typical style of a poke-thru fitting includes intumescent material that penetrates the concrete floor and a monument-style service head. The service head includes power and communication devices and is positioned above the floor. Penetration through the floor by the service head is minimized due to the fact that only wire and cabling are passed through the intumescent. The minimized floor penetration also reduces the labor cost of drilling into the concrete floor. That is, because a smaller hole is used, less drilling is required than if a larger hole were needed. Additionally, because a smaller hole is used, less intumescent material is needed.
In order to increase functionality of the poke-thru fitting, larger service heads are used. That is, in order to house additional power and communication devices within a service head, the service head typically needs to be larger to accommodate the additional components. However, larger service heads are more obtrusive than smaller service head. Further, while a larger service head allows for increased functionality, larger service heads may also be less aesthetically acceptable due to the fact that they take up more space than smaller service heads.
A second type of poke-thru fitting was developed to address the objectionable aesthetics of the monument-style poke-thru fitting. The second type of poke-thru fitting includes power and communication devices turned face-up with the floor, and are mounted flush with the floor surface. In order to obtain a low profile, the sides and back of the device are below the surface of the floor. The width of the poke-thru fitting (i.e., the diameter), however, must be large enough to accommodate the components contained within the fitting. As the diameter of the fitting increases, additional intumescent material is needed. Further, the number of devices housed within such a poke-thru fitting is limited.
Thus, a need exists for a poke-thru fitting that overcomes the drawbacks and deficiencies noted above.